SummaryIn most industrialized countries, the costs of compensation for musculoskeletal disorders account for at least one half of all workers compensation costs and recent reviews have reaffirmed that a strong work-related component exists for many upper limb and low back pain cases. A combination of physical, psychological, and psychophysical workplace risk factors have been documented. Risk factors for the development of low back pain include (moderately) flexed, laterally bent or twisted trunk postures, high forces on the hands, high one time or accumulated forces on the spine, and vibration. Similar workplace physical risk factors are associated with high levels of musculoskeletal disorders in the neck, shoulders and arms. Physical risk factors such as high forces, high repetition, working with arms overhead, long term static postures, local contact forces and vibration are commonly identified. Psychological risk factors are found regardless of whether the problem is upper limb, low back or elsewhere. They include perceptions of low control and poor workplace social environment, and perceptions of high physical demands whether measured to be high or not. There is conflicting evidence on the role of job satisfaction as a risk factor. Reduction of these risk factors is the goal of most preventive approaches. The work-related portion of the injuries and resulting disability is potentially preventable and it is important to identify interventions for reducing work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSD). There are many approaches to intervening in the workplace to reduce initial incidence (primary prevention) and disability (secondary prevention). For example workstation design changes, employee training, back schools, wrist splints and back belts, job rotatation and stress management are commonly used approaches. The purpose of this Chapter is to review the evidence for (or against) the utility of ergonomic interventions. The Chapter will not be an epidemiological review of intervention studies but, rather, it will map out the issues in intervention to prevent musculoskeletal disorders, summarize the literature which bears upon these issues and suggest issues that must be addressed in the future.

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Ergonomic interventions are commonly classified as engineering, administrative or behavioural/ personal. Rigorous evaluation of effectiveness of interventions is, however, difficult for methodological and organizational reasons and research reported on many interventions does not reach usually accepted levels of scientific quality. Despite this, the following conclusions appear warranted: For primary prevention, engineering interventions appear to reduce exposure to risk factors (efficacy) but the literature does not have enough studies which have applied these changes to sufficiently large numbers of workers to determine their effectiveness unequivocally. Similar comments apply to administrative interventions. There are a number of more robust experimental designs used in the assessment of behavioural and personal interventions. There is some, but limited, evidence for the effectiveness of exercise for reduction of LBP even though variables such as low muscular strength or body joint flexibility have not been convincingly shown to be risk factors, a preponderance of studies showing little effectiveness of education and contradictory evidence for personal equipment such as back belts. For secondary...

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...measurements and function. Over the last several dec­ades however, concern for human dimensions and body size, as critical factors in the design process, has steadily increased. No­where has this concern been greater than in the field of human fac­tors engineering, as it is called in the United States, or ergonomics, as it is referred to in Europe. It should be noted, however, that con­cern for body size is only one of several areas of interest to the human factors engineer, or ergonomist, due to the extremely com­plex nature of those disciplines. According to one definition, "human engineering (human factors engineering, ergonomics, biotechnol­ogy) is not a single scientific discipline but a synthesis which inte­grates the biological sciences—psychology, anthropology, physiology, and medicine—with engineering."
Ergonomics has been defined in one instance as “the technology of work design" that "is based on the human biological sciences: anat­omy, physiology and psychology." In another instance, it is defined more simply as "an interdisciplinary science which studies the rela­tionships between people and their environments ". Most agree that both terms "human engineering” and "ergonomics" may be used in­terchangeably and during the course of this book, both terms will be so used.
The application of human factors engineering has been typically associated with highly complex and limited technological problems in...

...﻿Case Study #32
MusculoskeletalDisorders
1. An x-ray examination of the thoracic spine reveals osteopenic changes at T7. What does this mean?
Osteopenia means that the bone is thinning which could lead to fractures. Bone thinning leads to osteoporosis. Decreased bone density occurs as people age. BMD determines bone strength and it peaks around 25-30 years of age. After these peak years, bone breabsorption exceeds bone building which causes a decrease in bone density.
Ignatavicius, D., D. & Workman, M., L. (2013).
2. The physician suspects osteoporosis. List seven risk factors associated with osteoporosis.
Cigarette smoking
Obesity
Lack of exercise
Postmentopausal
Low calcium intake
Low weight and BMI
Alcohol and caffeine consumption
Ignatavicius, D., D. & Workman, M., L. (2013).
3. Place a star next to those risk factors specific to M.S.
4. What tests could be done to determine whether M.S. has osteoporosis? Which tests is recommended and why?
N-teleopeptide (NTX) and C-teleopeptide (CTX) are proteins released when bone is broken down. Increases levels of these markers indicate a risk for osteoporosis. A peripheral DXA scan assesses BMD of the heel, forearm, or finger. The Quantitative computed tomography (QCT) can also mearsue bone density and the peripheral quantitative ultrasound (pQUS) detects osteoporosis and it can predict risk for hip fracture. The most commonly used screening for measuring BMD is the...

...ERGONOMICS
ABSTRACT
The understanding and practice of ergonomics, concentrated on the knowledge of human characteristics, abilities and needs, plays a fundamental role in satisfying people – whether they are ardent customers, users or workers. In this context ergonomics and quality can be regarded as overall approaches, as philosophies taking account of people in the way things are designed and organized. Given the conceptual similarities and that several indicators point to the fact that poor ergonomics may cause quality deficiencies, there has in recent years been an increased focus on the potential benefits of an integrative approach.
INTRODUCTION
Derived from the Greek ergon (work) and nomos (laws) to denote the science of work, ergonomics is a systems-oriented discipline, which now applies to all aspects of human activity. At times referred to as human factors, it’s a scientific discipline with the understanding of the co-relation of human and other elements of a system, and the profession that applies theoretical principles, data and methods to design in order to optimize human well being and overall system performance.
The Nordic Ergonomics Society defines ergonomics as the Interdisciplinary field of science and application considering integrated knowledge of human requirements and needs in the interaction human-technology-environment in the design of...

...﻿INTRODUCTION
The word "Ergonomics" comes from two Greek words "ergon," meaning work, and "nomos" meaning "laws." Today, however, the word is used to describe the science of "designing the job to fit the worker, not forcing the worker to fit the job." Ergonomics covers all aspects of a job, from the physical stresses it places on joints, muscles, nerves, tendons, bones and the like, to environmental factorswhich can effect hearing, vision, and general comfort and health.
Ergonomics is about designing for people, wherever they interact with products, systems or processes. We usually don’t notice good design (unless perhaps, it’s exceptional) because it gives us no cause to, but we do notice poor design. The emphasis within ergonomics is to ensure that designs complement the strengths and abilities of people and minimise the effects of their limitations, rather than forcing them to adapt. In achieving this aim, it becomes necessary to understand and design for the variability represented in the population, spanning such attributes as age, size, strength, cognitive ability, prior experience, cultural expectations and goals. Qualified ergonomists are the only recognised professionals to have competency in optimising performance, safety and comfort.
Practitioners study how people interact with products, processes and environments day to day in order to improve them, to make them easier to...

...Abstract
Musculoskeletaldisorders have been associated with the use of computers. This, coupled with the widespread of computers have contributed to the huge amount of research based on office workers, these researches and studies have identified the computer-related risk factors as; duration of use, frequency of use and awkward posture.
However, there is limited study found on university students’ computer usage and the prevalence ofmusculoskeletal discomfort, despite the fact that computers have become an essential tool in students’ academic life. Therefore, there is a need to study university students’ computer usage and the present of these identified risk factors, as they are the next-generation workforce.
The intention of this study is to explore the computer-related risk factors and the prevalence of musculoskeletal discomfort amongst the university student population. 198 respondents were examined and information was obtained with the use of questionnaires as a data collection instrument.
The findings show that students are exposure to risk factors similar to those of computer based office workers. It was found that 92.40% of the respondents use the computer beyond 20 hours in a week, which is known to be most pronounced with increase risk of musculoskeletaldisorders. 86.40% reported using the computer daily. The study also showed a high level of discomfort experienced by...

...﻿
SYNTHESIS
Ergonomics can be defined simply as the study of work. More specifically, ergonomics is the science of designing the job to fit the worker, rather than physically forcing the worker’s body to fit the job. Adapting tasks, work stations, tools, and equipment to fit the worker can help reduce physical stress on the workers body and eliminate potentially serious, disabling work related musculoskeletaldisorder (MSD).
MSDs, or musculoskeletaldisorders, are injuries and disorders of the soft tissues (muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints, and cartilage) and nervous system. They can affect nearly all tissues, including the nerves and tendon sheaths, and most frequently involve the arms and back. Occupational safety and health professionals have called these disorders a variety of names, including cumulative trauma disorders, repeated trauma, repetitive stress injuries, and occupational overexertion syndrome. These painful and often disabling injuries generally develop gradually over weeks, months, and years. MSDs usually result from exposure to multiple risk factors that can cause or exacerbate the disorders, not from a single event or trauma such as a fall, collision, or entanglement. MSDs can cause a number of conditions, including pain, numbness, tingling, stiff joints, difficulty moving, muscle...

...﻿
Musculoskeletal System Disorders
There are certain types of musculoskeletaldisorders that can impact your life immensely. One disorder is called Muscle atrophy, which is caused by a nerve problem and muscles decrease in mass. This decrease in muscle mass can be caused by diseases that immobile people such as arthritis, osteoarthritis, and even neurological disorders like ALS multiple sclerosis. Muscle atrophy can also be a symptom of malnutrition or muscle related diseases caused by alcohol consumption. This disorder can occur in one muscle or a group of muscles and symptoms include pain and swelling.
Another musculoskeletaldisorder is called Osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis is usually a result of aging. Because of aging, water increases in the cartilage and then protein that makes up the cartilage decreases. Cartilage then starts to degenerate causing crevasses and eventually the cartilage starts flaking away and eventually leading to total cartilage loss. Loss of the cartilage causes friction between the bones leading to pain, swelling and limited use of the joint.
Osteoporosis is a musculoskeletaldisorder that decreases bone mass. This disorder can be causes by a number of things, most common is age and sex of a person. Women are more likely to have this disorder than men...

...Diane Pollinger
Keyboarding
March 13, 2010
Week 10 Research Project
Ergonomics
When I first started my Keyboarding class this quarter, I thought I was way over my head. Although I can type fast and finish my work in a timely and professional manner, I never knew that even when your working on writing a paper there are certain ways to do everything. Your positioning plays a huge role in your success in completing all of your tasks as a Medical Assistant.Ergonomics is the science of designing the job, equipment, and workplace to fit the worker. Proper ergonomic design is necessary to prevent repetitive strain injuries, which can develop over time and can lead to long-term disability.
There are three different domains that International Ergonomics Association divides ergonomics into:
* Physical Ergonomics
* Cognitive Ergonomics
* Organizational Ergonomics
Physical Ergonomics deals with human anatomical, and some of the anthropometric, physiological and biomechanical characteristics as they relate to physical activity. Cognitive Ergonomics deals with mental processes, such as perception, memory, reasoning, and motor response, as they affect interactions among humans and other elements of a system. Organizational Ergonomics deals with the optimization of socio technical systems, including their...